Page 12 of Colorado's 2026 Seller's Property Disclosure has a metropolitan district section. Its first line asks the seller to check "Yes" if the property sits inside a metropolitan district "that was organized on or after January 1, 2000." CBS News Colorado calls The Meadows Castle Rock's largest neighborhood. According to its 2026 budget, Meadows Metropolitan District No. 1 was organized on July 11, 1985, almost fifteen years before that cutoff.
That checkbox matters because the Meadows debt works differently from what most buyers picture. The homeowners there pay the full levy, and the bond balance still gets bigger every year.
Where the Number Actually Shows Up in a Transaction
The state legislature has tried to close this gap. HB25-1219 was signed May 29, 2025 and took effect August 6, 2025. It requires residential sellers inside a metropolitan district to share the district's service plan, its authority to issue debt, levy taxes and impose fees, and an estimate of the district's property taxes for the year of sale, stated in dollars. The Commission-approved forms that became mandatory January 1, 2026 do not include a dollar-estimate field in the disclosure's metro district section. That section asks for district names and websites, and only after the post-2000 question.
In a standard Colorado deal, the metro district shows up in two places in the 2026 residential Contract to Buy and Sell:
- Section 8.4 is the all-caps warning. It says districts "may be subject to general obligation indebtedness" and that owners "may be placed at risk for increased mill levies." It points buyers to the county treasurer, the certificate of taxes due, and the county assessor.
- Section 8.5 requires a tax certificate listing every special taxing or metropolitan district that affects the property, delivered by the Record Title Deadline. If the buyer finds its content unsatisfactory, they have a termination right tied to that document.
The tax certificate lists the districts. It doesn't explain how their debt behaves. For The Meadows, that explanation is in the districts' own budget filings.
What a 35-Mill Cap Means in The Meadows
The Meadows' Series 1989A, 1989B and 1989C general obligation bonds were restructured on December 29, 1993. The 2026 budget for Meadows Metropolitan District No. 1 calls them bonds with a "capped mill levy." They carry 7.999% interest, payable quarterly. Unpaid interest becomes accrued interest, and accrued interest compounds every December 1. Payments on the bonds can't exceed what the limited levy and project revenue bring in after priority expenses. That levy has been fixed at 35 mills for collection years 2003 and later.
District 1's own debt schedule shows what that does in practice:
| District 1, Series 1989A | 2025 (estimated) | 2026 (estimated) |
|---|---|---|
| Principal | $30,730,000 | $30,730,000 |
| Accrued interest at start of year | $167,976,024 | $177,436,906 |
| Interest added during year | $15,800,893 | $16,477,510 |
| Interest paid during year | $6,340,011 | $6,255,735 |
| Accrued interest at year end | $177,436,906 | $187,658,681 |
The principal hasn't moved. The district projects about $16.5 million of new interest in 2026 against about $6.3 million paid. That leaves a net increase of roughly $10.2 million in a single year, and it comes from one district's share of the bonds. By the end of 2026, District 1 projects its total obligation at $218,388,681.
Why Full Payment Doesn't Shrink the Balance
Under ordinary debt, a missed payment is a crisis. These bonds were written so that it isn't. District 5's 2026 budget says "a failure to pay accrued interest because of lack of revenue does not constitute a default," so future payments "cannot be predicted with certainty." The levy is capped and the interest isn't. Whatever the levy doesn't cover rolls into the balance and starts earning 7.999% on its own.
That makes District 1's revenue line the variable that matters, and the 2026 budget shows it falling. Residential assessed value in the district drops from $74,826,860 in the 2025 estimate to $71,183,490 in the 2026 budget. At the same 35 mills, budgeted property taxes fall from $2,643,793 to $2,515,913. The board also moved part of the levy from debt service to the general fund, going from 29.280 and 5.720 mills to 28.655 and 6.345 mills. That shrinks the debt-service share further.
So when values soften, the bondholder collects less in cash, and the unpaid amount compounds at the bond rate. The 35 mills on a Meadows tax bill caps what owners pay each year, and it puts no limit on how long the debt lasts. Under this structure, a tax bill that never rises can sit alongside a debt that keeps growing.
District 1 doesn't pay the bondholder directly. Its 2026 general fund sends $2,528,867 to District No. 4 as an "intergovernmental expense." District 4 then sends $6,227,504 back to District 1's debt service fund to cover bond interest. The budgets name District 4 as the Master District that coordinates debt service for the whole project.
Who Controls the Master District
That routing explains why the 2025 board elections didn't settle anything. CBS News Colorado reported on residents organizing for the May 6, 2025 elections. An earlier CBS report said financial statements put the districts' total outstanding bond debt at nearly $434 million at the end of 2023. The later report also said that a 2007 court order excluded all of District 4 except one developer-owned parcel, while homeowners said they kept paying the district's tax. HOA Weekly reported in September 2026 that residents took control of five of the seven boards in May 2025. It described District 4 as remaining "entirely in developer hands," and it labeled its own account as reported and unconfirmed.
The resident boards' agendas show what they've been looking at. District 3's August 28, 2025 agenda listed outstanding bond balances and amounts paid, potential surplus revenue, district consolidation, eliminating District 4, hiring bond underwriters or financial advisers, and analyzing the bonds' effective yield. These were discussion items. The public record available doesn't show any of them completed.
District 4's August 26, 2026 special meeting agenda lists two directors and three vacant seats. It proposed considering a memorandum of understanding with Castle Rock Development Company, an inclusion process with interested stakeholders, and supplemental legal counsel for that process. An agenda isn't a vote. As of mid-October 2026, no outcome from that meeting, no refinancing, and no court ruling was available in the sources reviewed. The debt figure in circulation also varies. The Douglas County Lantern ran a 2026 piece titled "The Meadows of Castle Rock: $454 Million in Debt," which is paywalled, while CBS's figure rests on 2023 statements.
The Rest of Castle Rock Runs on Different Bond Math
Comparing neighborhoods by mill rate alone misses all of this, but the rates still differ widely. Here are district levies from Douglas County's 2025 Tax Districts and Mill Levies schedule, which sets taxes collected in 2026:
- Castlewood Ranch Metro District: 29.805 mills
- Crystal Valley Metro District No. 2: 22.525 mills, plus a 34.204-mill Subdistrict in some tax districts, for 56.729 combined
- Castle Oaks Metro District: 39.000 mills
- The Meadows Districts 1, 2, 3, 5, 6 and 7: 35 mills each
- Dawson Trails Metro Districts 1 through 5: about 74.0 to 76.5 mills
- Founders Village Metro District: 94.563 mills
These are district levies, not total tax rates. In one Dawson Trails tax district, District No. 1's 76.293 mills sits inside a total of 146.138 mills once every overlapping authority is counted. In one Meadows tax district, the total comes to 104.845 mills. The county says a parcel's total levy depends on its location and the authorities serving it, so the bill for a specific address can vary within the same subdivision. Founders Village's own district FAQ cites 87.314 mills as its current levy, which differs from the county's 2025 figure. The county schedule is the dated source.
On paper, The Meadows' 35 mills falls in the middle of that list. What sets it apart is the capped, compounding bond structure. In a district with no cap and amortizing debt, a higher levy can mean the balance actually shrinks. A moderate levy on top of compounding accrued interest means it grows. Those are the details a buyer only finds in the district's budget and debt schedule.
If you're weighing Castle Rock against other places, our Castle Rock neighborhood page and the guide to choosing a Castle Rock neighborhood when you commute cover the daily-life side of the comparison.
Quick Answers
Is a metro district the same as an HOA? No. A metro district is a quasi-municipal special district under Title 32 with taxing power, elected boards and an annual budget. An HOA is a private corporation that assesses its members under a recorded declaration. Many Colorado subdivisions have both on the same lots.
Where are the Meadows budgets posted? District 1 posts filings at meadowsmetropolitandistrict.com. Districts 2 through 7 post at meadowsmd2-7.com, which also lists board rosters and meeting notices.
Does the 2025 reappraisal reflect today's prices? Douglas County's 2025 reappraisal used sales from July 1, 2022 through June 30, 2024. The appraisal date was June 30, 2024, and later market activity isn't included.
How a metro district's debt is built can change what you're really paying for a house in Castle Rock, and the tax certificate deadline in your contract is when that comes into focus. Jennifer Koslowsky can go through the district filings, the levy schedule and the contract timeline with you before you commit to a neighborhood. Schedule a Consultation.
This article is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Consult a qualified professional about your situation.
